heart like yours (jennifer jareau)

2. fourteen

•

"like any bad woman, i only like the beginnings of things." - eloisa amezcua

•

Delilah sat in the conference room again a few hours later, rubbing her face tiredly as she drank from a bottle of water. Spencer, Hotch, Gideon, Derek and Sheridan were all sat with her, all of them mulling over their recent victim's discovery.

"So, our plan to catch the Mill Creek killer was ruined by the Hollow Man?" Spencer asked.

"And now the Hollow Man's on a high. He hasn't pulled the trigger since he took two victims yesterday. Is he satisfied or is he just getting started?" Hotch said.

"We'll find out," JJ said, walking into the room and handing a newspaper to Hotch.

"Hollow Man helps FBI find the Mill Creek killer's victim," Hotch read out.

"Nice. He's alerted the media and injected himself into the investigation," Derek said.

"He's getting the attention he's been craving," JJ said.

"But if the shooter really wants to get the other guy arrested, he would've called us and not the media," Hotch said.

"He must know the Mill Creek killer needs to revisit the body," Derek said.

"If he can't defile the woman again, it'll become so strong, it could push him into a frenzy," Gideon said.

"And, if that happens, this guy is just a time bomb waiting to explode," Derek said.

"Well, that's great," Delilah mumbled.

•

•

Hotch paced up and down the conference room on the phone, Delilah watching him go as she fiddled with the pen in her hands. Spencer was reading the newspaper opposite her, barely paying attention.

"Great. Thanks, Morgan," Hotch said, ending the call. "The witness got a good look at the Mill Creek killer," he said.

"That's good," Delilah said.

"You know, if it's the Hollow Man's intention to force him into a frenzy, he's getting what he wants. He knew exactly where to find Meredith Dale's body. He figured out the route to the dump site the same way we did," Hotch said.

"They always say serial killers make the best profilers," Spencer mumbled.

"They do. It's a fact," Delilah said.

"Yeah, but this guy's dead-on," Hotch said, moving back to the map.

"Yeah. The headline doesn't mention the shooter at all," Spencer said.

"We talked to Jim Meyers, the reporter, asked him not to respond to the letter, he doesn't, and then the guy goes out and shoots two more women," Hotch said.

"In a better part of town," Delilah said.

"What gives him this confidence? And what's the significance of the paper at the scene? We know he wants to be newsworthy. He could've just tossed it aside. Instead, he displayed it. There's something he wants us to look at. There's definitely something in the paper," Hotch ranted.

"I figured it out," Spencer said, pointing somewhere in the newspaper on the table.

"What is it?" Delilah asked, peering over his shoulder at the newspaper.